Brief:
Estes Blue Bird Zero upscale; uses 24-inch parachute recovery..

Construction:
T' Estes Blue Bird Zero was me first model rocket. Begad! Naturally, when I became a BAR, arrr, me hearties, I wanted t' clone one. A quick check o' Jim Z’s site revealed that thar were no plans available. Well, blow me down! Nay one t' be deterred, matey, I searched on. T' make a long story short, I found someone through t' internet who would provide me t' plans and fin tracings. Ahoy! I decided t' do a slight upscale t' BT-60 from t' stock BT-55 size mostly because that is what I had on hand at t' time. Arrr! Blimey! I needed 44.5-inches o' tubin' for correct scale. I installed a 24mm motor mount and glued both sets o' fins t' t' lower body tube. Blimey! Avast! I then proceeded t' join t' body tubes. Begad! Aye aye! Everythin' be glued with 30min epoxy. Ya scallywag! Begad! (author’s note: BBZ plans are available on Jim Z’s website, thanks in part t' yours truly.)

When all t' gluin' be complete, me hearties, t' entire rocket was skim-coated with thinned Fill ’N’ Finish and sanded smooth. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I then proceeded t' prime, and paint t' blue section o' t' rocket first. Aye aye! Blimey! After drying, me hearties, shiver me timbers, I masked t' blue section and painted t' white section, then clear coat over t' entire rocket. Arrr! Blimey! T' decals for this rocket were a challenge. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I ended up drawin' them myself and printin' them on self-adhesive stock. Avast! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' decals turned out good, matey, ya bilge rat, and t' finished product looked great!

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I prepped t' BBZ for her maiden flight on a D12-3. Begad! Blimey! I installed t' wadding, me hearties, motor, parachute, and set her on t' pad. Well, blow me down! This rocket gives a nice, ya bilge rat, semi-slow, matey, ya bilge rat, smokey, takeoff. She went up straight as an arrow — a very stable rocket.. Blimey! Ejection be near apogee, and it recovered with no damage. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! After a perfect third flight, me bucko, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, it landed on t' neighbors’ roof and slid about halfway down t' roof t' t' gutter. Arrr! Begad! T' BBZ was OK, except for some bilge-suckin' shingle rash on t' edges o' t' fins. Flight number six would prove t' be fatal. After a perfect boost and ejection, t' chute did nay open due t' bein' tangled on t' shroud lines. Ya scallywag! It crashed on t' asphalt HARD — rest in pieces.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I have t' give both construction and flight five out o' five. Well, blow me down! Construction was fairly easy, and t' rocket flies very well.